Slovakia Allows ES64U2 Test Operation

On 15 June 2015, permission for test commercial operation, valid until 15 June 2016, was granted for ES64U2-061, 073 and 074 by Dopravný úrad. The machines are on hire from MRCE to LTE, and the permission only covers the haulage of LTE’s freights. The very first run into Slovakia with freight involved ES64U2-074 hauling a train of coke from Burghausen to Žiar nad Hronom on 4 July. This photo shows the train in southwest Slovakia, between Podhájska and Beša. The other diesels coupled behind Taurus are 744.001 (on hire from CZ LOKO) and LTE's own 740.541 and Eurorunner 2016 904. So far, permission has only been granted for the 52 Type ES64U2 Tauruses belonging to MRCE to use the stretch of line between Bratislava-Petržalka and the Slovakian border with Austria, this being awarded on 20 April 2015.